Corsage bags of the general type with which this invention is concerned made out of flexible plastic film are known and have been used for many years. The typical bag is formed as a tube with pleat-folded sides and a closed bottom almost like the familiar kraft grocery bags, the bottom being sealed by heat or electronic welding and the top end being left open. Inside the bag, on the surface of one wall which becomes the rear wall of the bag, a rectangular member of cardboard or chipboard is affixed, this member having an ornamental finish produced by printing or the like. The rectangular member covers most of the rear wall and furnishes a background against which the corsage or the like is advantageously displayed.
The corsage bag described is purchased by florists in flat condition and when used is expanded, the corsage inserted and the open end folded and sealed by pins, staples or heat welding. The ornamental background member does not extend completely to the open edge thereby leaving an area which can be folded and closed by the florist without interfering with the background member which is usually stiff enough to resist folding.
The known corsage bag described above is expensive because each bag must be made in a manner requiring operations assembling two parts. The background insert must be made and handled in addition to the plastic bag part and the insert per se is expensive. The bag is heavy and stiff and may not follow the graceful contours of flowers placed therein.
The bag of the invention is extremely economical while being very effective to protect and display the corsage therein to its best advantages. It eliminates the insert mentioned above but necessitated the solution to several problems before it could become a practical product. These include application of a background in such a manner that the assembly of the bag is not interfered with, the establishment of a pattern of indicia on a blank which would provide the desired background while leaving areas clear for certain purposes to be explained. In addition, the invention enables long and continuous strips of plastic film to be printed on a production line and then fed into automatic machinery, if desired, for producing the bag of the invention.
All of the disadvantages of the prior bag have been eliminated.
Prior art patents are known in the general field including Nos. 2,774,187; 3,271,922; 3,376,666; 4,006,561; 4,189,868; and 4,216,620. No inference should be drawn that these patents represent a comprehensive list of the prior art or that they are relevant or pertinent to the invention.